1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to the art of visitor control and tracking systems and, more particularly, to a visitor control and tracking system for a venue that monitors and guides visitors from one of a plurality of access points towards one or more destination points.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
As population centers continue to grow and as the number of users of public transportation increases, it is important to monitor and control the flow of people moving from one location to another, particularly during time of heightened security. Large venues having multiple access points and multiple internal destinations, such as amusement parks, fairgrounds, historical sites, community parks and the like, can benefit from crowd control and monitoring. For example, monitoring the flow of people in a rail station enables individuals to be directed toward areas of the station that are less crowded and to a desired platform without getting lost thereby increasing their chances of finding, for example, a train or rail car without the need for a prolonged wait.
Amusement parks, fairgrounds, historical sites and the like would also benefit from crowd control and monitoring devices. Visitors entering amusement parks typically head to a favorite area without knowledge or regard for how crowded that area may be. If the visitor is provided with real-time information regarding each potential destination in the park, the visitor could opt to head to less crowded areas, or toward areas where the flow of visitors is moving quickly and lines are shorter. In this manner, the visitor's overall experience at the venue is positive, which leads to an increase in the likelihood of a return visit.
In addition to frustration that large crowds can generate, large uncontrolled crowds are an attractive target for terrorists. Terrorists use large crowds as cover for carrying out various attacks on civilian populations. The crowds themselves offer an attractive target for terrorists. During prior attacks in London and Barcelona, terrorists hid among crowds trying to board trains and plant bombs which, when detonated, resulted in deaths and injury of numerous civilians. At present, security in many transportation hubs and large venues is primarily passive. That is, many transportation hubs and other large venues simply employ cameras to monitor people waiting for trains or moving about a theme park towards various attractions. Many facilities also employ security personnel, both uniformed and undercover, that mingle with the crowds and which are ready to respond as necessary to emergency situations.
Unfortunately, large crowds often make it difficult to properly monitor all situations and areas. Actually, many terrorists watch the monitors in order to determine how security personal respond to various situations. That is, the terrorists seek out established patterns in responses. Once any patterns in the responses can be determined, plans are adjusted to compensate for the probable response in order to increase the likelihood of success of any planned event. By providing security personnel with real-time monitoring of crowd flow, randomized responses to various security threats can be developed that will thwart potential terrorists. In venues that employ security screening, individuals failing the screening process can often times get lost in the crowds before security personnel can respond. Also, without proper screening, individuals can enter private areas of the park unnoticed. Furthermore, present screening systems are not fully compatible with large crowds entering a venue. Existing screening systems are typically low-through put systems which themselves create congestion at entrances to the venue. Thus, the screening system itself generates long lines and crowds which are themselves potential targets.
Based on the above, there exists a need for an effective crowd control and monitoring system. More specifically, there exists a need for a crowd control and monitoring system that establishes a high throughput screening system, provides security personnel with a means to monitor and track potential threats, and also provides members of the crowd with real-time information regarding a particular venue or location.